The PPE would allow companies to reduce employees’ daily working hours to save up to 30 percent on salaries, Xinhua reported quoting Labour and Employment Minister Manoel Dias.

By using a dedicated fund, the government would cover half of each salary reduction, or 15 percent of the total.

To be the part of the PPE, companies must comply with a certain index, which will be calculated based on the number of their employees hired and fired over the past 12 months before applying for the programme.

The programme will make companies better prepared for economic reversals, said Laudemir Muller, secretary general of the presidency.

Luiz Moan, president of the National Association of Vehicle Manufacturers, spoke highly of the program, hailing it as a “necessity for the moment this country is getting through.”